


Freelance Good Guys: Divine Executioner

by TheGreys (alienjpeg)



Series: Looming Gaia [28]
Category: Freelance Good Guys, Looming Gaia
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Blood and Gore, Body Horror, Depression, Drama, Explicit Language, Fantasy, Friendship, Gen, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, M/M, Magic, Mental Health Issues, Suicidal Thoughts, Suicide Attempt, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-04
Updated: 2020-06-04
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:01:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24545830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alienjpeg/pseuds/TheGreys
Summary: Lukas finds himself ensnared in the dark embrace of a divine. Will he ever see the light again?
Series: Looming Gaia [28]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/833844
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4





	Freelance Good Guys: Divine Executioner

**Author's Note:**

> For concept art, discussions, memes and more, check out the Looming Gaia blog: https://loominggaia.tumblr.com/post/175087795478/looming-gaia-masterpost
> 
> This story was exhausting to write and it’s probably just as exhausting to read. This isn’t so much an action/adventure story as a drama piece, dealing with some pretty heavy subjects that I know a lot of people unfortunately relate to. This one came from a personal place, so it feels pretty cathartic to finally finish it. I hope that despite the subject matter, you can enjoy this story in its own miserable way. As usual, please heed the tags for content warnings.

*

_EARLY_ _SPRING 6007_

The wine was worth more than most horses, aged for over a century and imported all the way from Kelloru. It was a special gift from the king of Uekoro, a token of his love for Evan.

Still, Evan just couldn’t bring himself to drink the whole bottle alone. His crew had accused him of being a lush in the past and he hadn’t the energy to face their pointing fingers again. He decided he would share it with all of them, then they could only point at themselves.

As his oldest and closest friend, Lukas was first on his list. Evan made his way to Lukas’ treehouse near the gate of the compound. He climbed up the ladder and knocked on the door to the tiny wooden shack. Three crows were perched on the railing, cawing at him incessantly.

There was no answer. Evan knocked a second time and called, “Lukas? Are you home?”

Apparently not, for there was still no answer. The crows were still squawking at Evan, perhaps protecting a nest nearby. “Shoo,” he muttered, absently swatting his hand towards them. The birds fluttered off into the trees.

Unwilling to wait, Evan unlocked the door with one of the many keys on his belt and let himself in. He would leave some of the wine as a surprise. Lukas had been in a foul mood since they last left Uekoro—more foul than usual. Maybe the surprise would cheer him up.

The single-room house was dark when Evan stepped inside. The windows were shuttered. The only light was that which beamed through the open door, illuminating a long stripe across the room. Evan looked around fondly at his friend’s personal space—his hammock, his rickety table, his easel with a half-finished painting drying upon it. Books and art supplies were scattered haphazardly around every surface.

He approached the cabinet at the back of the room to search for an empty bottle. Something brushed over his hair as he did. Evan jumped back and swiped at it, fearing a snake or a spider. It was neither. Rather, it was a rope. It dangled from one of the sturdy beams in the ceiling, its end tied into a loop.

Evan cocked his eyebrow at the contraption. He noticed a stool sitting nearby, the wooden one all splattered with paint, which was usually tucked right in front of the easel. The captain’s blood seemed to freeze. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end, his stomach twisted into knots. The bottle of expensive wine nearly slipped out of his hand and he fumbled to save it, clutching it tightly to his chest.

No, he thought, he couldn’t leave it here. Alcohol was the last thing Lukas needed right now. He had to find him at once.

Evan hurried out the door, closing and locking it behind him. Just as he turned around, he saw a face peek up from the ladder. Lukas shot him a strange look as he climbed onto the balcony. “Evan? What are you doing here?” he asked.

Evan floundered for a moment. He glanced down at the wine bottle in his hands, then awkwardly tucked it under his arm and replied, “Oh, Lukas, hello! I was just looking for you. Where have you been, friend?”

Lukas patted the rucksack hanging off his shoulder. “Just went to get coffee beans,” he said. His tone was dull, his eyes ringed by dark bags.

Lukas stared at Evan for a brief moment, furrowing his brow ever so slightly. “What’s the matter?” he asked. Evan began to sweat. Lukas always could read him like a book.

Evan cleared his throat, replied, “Nothing! Just, um…I wanted to ask if you’d like to help me with something.”

“What is it?”

“A bonfire,” Evan’s tongue blurted, and now his brain had to catch up. “Er, since it’s the first of spring and all, I thought we could—you know, have a bonfire to celebrate. The whole crew will be there, gods willing. But I need help gathering refreshments. I, uh, managed to get my hands on this,” he finished, waggling the bottle of expensive wine.

Lukas looked at the bottle, then slowly nodded. He spoke just as slowly when he said, “I see.”

Evan’s heart was pounding. Lukas’ gaze dropped to his boots, looking a bit nervous himself. Evan knew about Lukas’ secret and Lukas knew that he knew because he was one of cat-like perception. Not the slightest thing could sneak by him.

After a moment, Lukas cleared his throat and said, “Alright. I guess I’ve got nothing better to do. What kind of refreshments are we talking about?”

The knot in Evan’s shoulders loosened. “Well…”

*

No one knew about the bonfire, of course. Not until it was already blazing in the middle of the training grounds. Evan sped through the compound on his draft horse, calling all of the mercenaries to come celebrate.

He and Lukas spent hours gathering wood and snacks from all over the village, inviting every villager that would come. By evening time, the entire mercenary crew and many of their friends from Drifter’s Hollow were gathered around the fire in an impromptu celebration. Any excuse for drink and dance was a welcome one.

The expensive wine flowed freely among them, splashing around in their cups as they danced to a live musical performance. Alaine stood atop a picnic table, singing and strumming her lute in a lively tune. Glenvar banged his drum on her left, Mr. Ocean playing his sitar to her right.

Even Flora couldn’t help but join the celebration, for she had just clawed her way out of the soil after the long, harsh winter and she was itching to shake the cold out of her bones. She skipped and twirled to the music, villagers cheering her on as she brought life back to the barren forest. From her every footstep sprouted little green stems, which instantly expanded and unfurled into lush, white daisies.

Isaac shoved his fingers in his mouth and whistled, high and sharp. The crowd scattered when Shadow swooped down from the forest canopy, snapping branches in her wake. Her talons hit the ground with a booming thud. Isaac clapped his hands in rhythm while he hop-skipped circles around the bird.

Shadow’s head bobbed, watching him jump up and down. Before long, she spread her massive wings out to her sides and began to bob her whole body in rhythm, letting out a crow of excitement.

She danced as if she were courting a mate. But Isaac had trained her to do so at his command, if only for his amusement. It amused his friends too, and they circled the roc in a flurry of cheers as they imitated her funny moves.

They danced and drank all through the night until the sky grew dark and the bonfire shrank to glowing cinders. One by one, villagers and mercenaries alike began to disperse. They thanked Evan for the wine, praised his spontaneity, and prattled on about how much he must have cared about them to go through all the trouble.

When in reality, it had nothing to do with them at all. Every last bit of energy that Evan threw into the party was only for Lukas’ sake. He thought perhaps it would lift his sunken spirits, would remind him that despite all his misery, he was still loved.

Lukas had danced and smiled a little with some persistent prodding, but Evan could tell that he was still in low spirits as the celebration came to an end. He saw Lukas sitting on a fallen log, isolated from the group with an empty drink in his hand. He was staring down into his cup as if would tell him something he wanted to know.

Evan approached him and said, “Thanks for all the help setting this up, friend. I think they really appreciated that.”

“Yeah,” replied Lukas. Evan waited, but he had nothing more to say.

“Hey, um…” the mercenary captain continued, swiping at his reddening neck. “I realize we’re grown men and all, but…would you…” He spoke uncertainly, as if the words did not want to leave the safety of his tongue. “…like to spend the night?”

Lukas finally glanced up at him. “What?”

“Like a sleepover. We’ll build a fort in my sitting room! Come on, it’ll be fun,” insisted Evan, though his strained smile could not hide the awkwardness in his tone.

Lukas carelessly tossed his cup on the ground and said, “Evan, you _can’t_ be serious…”

“Why not?”

“How much have you had to drink tonight?”

Evan’s expression dropped, tone sincere when he said, “Won’t you just humor me? Please?”

Lukas quickly stood up and opened his mouth to shout. He stopped, looking this way and that for listening ears. Then he leaned in close and whispered instead, “Are you kidding me right now? You haven’t even broken up with the man!”

The captain recoiled, quirking his brow in confusion. “What are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about Jelani!” Lukas hissed. “At least have the decency to break it off with him before you come crawling back to me! And for the record, no, I’m not interested!”

The realization hit Evan like a ton of bricks. He waved his hands frantically as he explained, “No, no, no—Lukas, that’s not—I didn’t mean—”

“What _do_ you mean?” snapped Lukas. “You’ve been acting like a stranger all day! What’s going on with you?”

“Me? What about you?” Evan snapped back.

“What about me?”

“You’re as dour as a funeral! Ever since we returned from Uekoro, you’ve been like a dead man walking,” Evan told him.

With a shallow roll of his eyes, Lukas replied, “Well, it’s not like I had to deal with dead men walking while I was there or anything! Some fucking vacation that was!”

Evan sighed, shaking his head. “I’m sorry that happened, Lukas. I know that whole thing must have been harrowing for you.” He reached out and clamped his hands on the man’s shoulders. “But that’s precisely why I can’t bear the thought of leaving you alone tonight! I ask you this not to pester you, but because you’re very dear to me…” Evan stared hard into his friend’s eyes and asked, “Are you okay?”

Lukas hesitated. His hesitation said enough.

“Damn it, Evan,” he sighed. After a thoughtful pause, he decided, “Fine. I’ll join your little sleepover. But I am _not_ having sex with you!”

“That was never part of the plan,” Evan assured him.

“Good. And you can forget about the pillow-fort too! Just make the couch up nice for me and I’ll promise not to snore.”

A little smile crossed Evan’s face. He patted his friend’s shoulder and said, “You have yourself a deal.”

*

Lukas slept at Evan’s house that night. Rather, he laid on the couch and stared into the darkness for hours as his insomnia plagued him the way it always did. He tried not to sleep when he could help it. Slumber was a cruel beast, and should he become ensnared in its maw, he would be dragged off into frightening dreamscapes he feared he would never wake from.

He dreamt of sprawling jungles with no end, of fighting his way through toxic plants, stinging bugs, and clawing branches. In this jungle he always encountered a great orange python with sickly-yellow stripes. The creature wore his mother’s face as it coiled around him and crushed him to death, and he woke gasping for air.

He dreamt of sprinting across vast, dry savannahs with no civilization in sight. A thunderous herd of zebras chased him as far as he could run, led by an armored jockey with his brother’s face, until he collapsed from exhaustion and they trampled him under their relentless hooves. His whole body ached when he awoke.

He dreamt of dark, twisting dungeons of which there seemed to be no end. Each time he found the exit, a gang of faceless, knife-wielding bandits were waiting for him behind the door. They attacked and violated him all at once, slitting his throat when they were through, and he woke with tears on his face.

Lukas often slept standing up or with one eye open, never allowing himself to nap more than a few minutes at a time, lest he wander too far into the dreamworld. He watched the sun rise every morning and this morning was no exception. He shared a cup of coffee with Evan before leaving, forcing a smile and assuring him that he’d be okay.

But would he really? He was so tired. The constant, gnawing exhaustion had been worse than usual since he returned from Uekoro. Lukas was struggling to keep his eyes open under the harsh sunlight. His body begged for sleep while his mind begged for distraction. Lukas chose distraction and headed to the lake.

Mist floated across the glassy waters. He could just barely see Glenvar’s red house boat through the fog and Alaine’s shack just beyond that. It was quiet, serene. Not even Mr. Ocean was awake at this hour.

A small canoe was leaning up against a tree, the one Glenvar often used for deep-lake fishing. Lukas dragged the canoe into the water, using an oar to shove off the shoreline and float to the center of the lake.

Lukas didn’t even intend to fish. He simply wanted to escape to a place where no one would disturb him, a place where he was free to clear his thoughts. The fog enveloped him like a blanket, nearly suffocating in its density. He couldn’t see a thing beyond the edge of his canoe.

There was a time when he would talk these difficult feelings out with Evan. But the more he spoke to the man, the more vulnerable he allowed himself to be, and the more he fell in love. Love was a sick and twisted thing. Lukas could not allow love to hurt him again as it did so long ago. Loving someone could only end in tears, he thought, for no one was forever.

Lukas heard a crow cawing in the distance. He thought nothing of it until one suddenly landed on the side his boat. He jumped in surprise, staring at the animal as it cawed back at him. Just as he drew his hand back to shoo it away, a second crow landed on his arm. He flailed, scrambling to the back of the boat as a whole flock descended.

In the blink of an eye, over a dozen crows were perched on the opposite end of the canoe, cawing and staring at him with their beady little eyes. Had Glenvar left some chum somewhere in the boat? Lukas picked up the oar by his feet. But just before he could swing it, the crows flew into one another in a flurry of beating wings and flying feathers.

Black smoke consumed the mob, and seconds later, the crows disappeared. Left in their place was a person shrouded in a long, black cloak, sitting on the seat opposing Lukas. Lukas furrowed his brow, knuckles turning white as his grip tightened on the oar, still ready to swing.

The person was human, a woman, as far as he could tell by her soft jawline and slender neck. It seemed her flesh hadn’t seen the sun in years, ghostly-white as a corpse. Her eyes were obscured by the bold shadow of her hood.

She broke the silence, but hardly the tension when she said, “Don’t fear me. I’m not here to hurt you. I know you’re in terrible pain, and I only wish to help.”

“Who are you?” Lukas demanded. The oar was one bad answer away from crashing into the stranger’s skull.

“My name is Morganya,” she told him. “I’ve been watching you for some time. I felt your despair from across the plains of Noalen, and I made my way all the way here just to ask you one question…”

She lifted her head, exposing pale, blue eyes. “Are you okay?”

Lukas hesitated. His grip on the oar loosened slightly. “I…” he began to answer, then decided to ask a question of his own. “Why do you care? I don’t even know you!”

Morganya answered, “But I know _you_ , Lukas. You don’t even have to speak. I can feel the turmoil inside of you, I have seen the horrors in your dreams, and I know that you’ve been suffering for a long, long time.”

Lukas lowered the oar. “You’re some kind of sorceress, then,” he guessed.

“I am much more than that,” she said. “I am the best friend you’ll ever have. I will always be there for you. I will never judge your feelings, no matter how ugly they become. I will make no demands of you. Loving me will never end in tears, for I have no end at all.”

She reached one slender hand towards Lukas, paying him a shallow bow. “I am an immortal divine.”

Another silence passed between them. Lukas looked her up and down. She appeared human, yet he’d just witnessed her perform some kind of magic. That alone gave him reason to believe her.

“What do you want with me?” he asked.

She told him, “As I said, I only want to help you. Grief is my passion, and I seek those who need me most. Your anguish is dire, Lukas. Won’t you allow me to take your pain away?”

Whoever this woman was, she was certainly powerful. Lukas had no doubt that she really was a divine. But he was not familiar with her—not that he ever studied that kind of thing anyway. He had little interest in magic and the cosmic aspects of Looming Gaia. Even if he had, he felt those things were well beyond his understanding.

“I’m not interested. Leave me alone,” he decided, raising the oar once again.

Morganya stood up, palms splayed before her to show she meant no harm. “Very well. It’s all up to you,” she said.

She reached beneath her cloak, appeared to pluck something out of her hair and handed it to Lukas. It was a crow’s feather, as sleek and black as jet. “If you change your mind, just hold this feather and call my name from the darkness. Whenever you’re lonely, whenever you need a body to hold or a soul to trust, I will always be there for you. Mortals die, but I am forever. Remember that.”

A cloud of black smoke suddenly consumed her. Lukas stepped back, nearly tumbling into the lake. The smoke dissipated as quickly as it arrived, and Morganya was nowhere to be seen.

Lukas was alone in his boat again, staring off into the silent void of fog. The whole experience felt like a dream. Had he accidentally fallen asleep? If so, he’d somehow awoken with a feather in his hand. He gazed down at it, stroking its black fibers. It was solid and so very real.

Then so too was Morganya.

*

As he rowed his way back to shore, Lukas spotted a figure through the fog. It was much too short and round to be Morganya. The edge of his canoe scraped along the pebbly shore, and only then could he see Glenvar looking back at him with a fishing pole in his hand.

“There’s the damn boat!” exclaimed Glenvar. “I thought Ocean sunk it or somethin’! I was about to fish him up and give him what fer!”

Climbing back onto solid ground, Lukas replied dully, “Here, I’m done with it. I just wanted some peace and quiet, but apparently I can’t have that either.”

Lukas shoved his cold hands in his vest pockets as he headed down the dirt trail to the compound. Not ten paces away and Glenvar called after him, “Hey, wait! You, uh…wanna go fishin’ with me?”

Lukas stopped, turning to face him. “What?”

“Jump back in,” said Glenvar, sweeping his hand towards the canoe. “We’ll catch somethin’ fresh and cook it up fer lunch.”

“Since when have you ever asked me to go fishing with you?”

“Well, I’m askin’ ya now!” urged Glenvar. “Are ya comin’ or not? I know ya ain’t got nothin’ better to do, so ya might as well.”

Lukas stared at the golden-haired man, standing there with a pole in his hand and a bucket of chum at his feet. He replied, “You’ve done nothing but piss me off, argue with me and insult me for the last ten years, and now suddenly you want to be friends?” He shook his head, expression souring. “Fuck you, Glen! Don’t even act like you know a damn thing about me or my life, because you don’t!”

With that, he stormed off down the trail. Glenvar’s pale face flushed pink with anger. He stamped his booted foot and called after the archer, “Fine! Feck you too, ya _kirksleker_! I was just tryin’ to be nice!”

He pitched his pole into the grass and kicked his chum bucket over in a fit of rage. He always had a nasty temper, Lukas knew well, and Lukas usually caught the brunt of his anger since he was never afraid to call the man out on his childish behavior.

Glenvar never liked him before, so how dare he stand there and act like they were best friends! Did he think him a child? Some kind of dog to be beaten and then patted on the head as if nothing happened? Lukas was downright insulted.

He made his way down the long, dirt trail through the compound. Birds were just beginning to tweet their morning songs. He saw not a soul on the pathway until Jeimos stepped out of Evan’s office. They were holding a clipboard in their hands as they walked, thoughtfully tapping a pencil against their pointed chin.

The elf glanced up and just happened to see Lukas walking by. “Oh! Lukas, I’m glad to see you!” they exclaimed, trotting up to walk beside him. “I may need your help with something. You see, I’m—”

“Not interested,” droned Lukas.

Jeimos held the clipboard before him and went on, “But it’s something very important. It could benefit the whole village!”

“I’m busy.”

Jeimos wouldn’t hear it. They continued to explain, “I need someone to help me gather steel pipes, as many as we can get our hands on. I just drew up schematics for a basic plumbing system that—”

“Jeimos, what part of ‘no’ don’t you understand?” Lukas snapped. “Find someone else to help you!”

The elf’s crimson brows sagged. “But I want _your_ help! Please, can’t you spare just one day with me?”

“No!”

“Please, Lukas?”

Jeimos yelped as the man slapped the clipboard out of their hands. “God, you’re insufferable today! This is the kind of behavior I’d expect from Isaac, not you! Leave me alone!” he growled, and he continued on his path down the trail.

He heard the elf sniffling behind him. He glanced back only briefly, saw the elf picking up the scattered papers with tears in their eyes. They secured them back onto their clipboard and shouted after him, “I’m sorry to have bothered you, but you don’t have to be so bloody mean about it!”

Lukas just rolled his eyes and muttered something foul under his breath, though truly, his chest ached with remorse. He never meant to make Jeimos cry. But they should have listened to him, he reasoned. They shouldn’t have disrespected him by ignoring his wishes the first time around. They must have had no respect for him at all.

That was two crewmen—two friends—that he managed to upset and the day had only just begun. Lukas stopped in the middle of the pathway, dragging his hands over his haggard face. How his eyes burned. How his body ached. How his conscience flogged him for his awful behavior towards his friends. The regret was sinking down into his heart like a stone.

He looked at the pathway ahead, leading down to his dark, lonely house with a noose just waiting to strangle him. Lukas tore himself away from the thought. Evan was surely at work in his office by now. Though he hated to resort to such a thing, he decided he would spill his feelings to the captain and see if he could help him get his head on straight. It was a desperate measure, but then again, these were desperate times.

Lukas turned around and headed back towards the office. It was but a small single-room building made from wooden planks. Inside were some bookshelves, a couple chairs, and a desk.

“Evan—” Lukas began as he stepped inside. He frozen in the doorway, for Evan was not at his desk. In his place was a plump, redheaded satyress all peppered with freckles. She looked up from her paperwork to greet him.

“Good morning, Mr. Fanaka.”

“Uh, hey, Ginger,” Lukas replied quickly. “Do you know where Evan went? I need to talk to him. It’s important.”

An apologetic frown crossed Ginger’s face as she explained, “Oh, I’m sorry. Mr. Atlas just left about a half-hour ago.”

“He left? Where?”

“He said he had to catch a flight to Serkel. It seemed quite urgent. I think he’s visiting with someone important.”

Lukas’ jaw dropped. So Evan couldn’t even be bothered to tell his crew he was leaving—not even his best friend? On a dangerous flight to a faraway continent, no less! The disrespect! The utter betrayal! How could he just vanish at a time like this, when Lukas needed him most? And to do what? Fool around with Lukas’ brother, who he didn’t even love? Some ‘friend’ he was!

“That bastard!” Lukas shouted, startling Ginger. “That selfish, inbred son of a bitch…!” He stormed out of the office, slamming the door in his wake. Ginger stared wide-eyed at the place he once stood, confusion written all over her face.

Lukas made a beeline towards his treehouse. It stood just across the road from Evan’s stone cottage, where he spotted Isaac scattering grain for the chickens in the yard. The young mercenary spotted him back, then hopped the fence and rushed to greet him.

“Lukas—”

“Fuck off!” the archer snapped, continuing towards his house.

Isaac cocked his head in surprise. “Woah! I just wanted to ask you something!” he said.

Lukas replied, “Whatever it is, the answer is ‘no’!”

“Evan’s gone and I need some help with the animals.”

“Too bad for you!”

Just before Lukas reached the ladder to his balcony, Isaac darted in front of him and blocked the way. “Why are you being such a butthole lately?” asked Isaac.

“Aren’t I always? Move!” Lukas tried to skirt around him, but Isaac shoved him and argued,

“No! Can you just sit down and talk to me, please?”

Lukas was fuming. He shoved Isaac back against the ladder and shouted, “Has everyone lost their minds today? You and the entire crew have been up my ass from the moment I got up this morning!”

He paused for a moment. Then he seized Isaac by the neck of his green shirt and growled, “Who put you up to this? Was it that woman in black?”

“What?” Isaac blurted. He wriggled out of the archer’s grip and spat, “I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

“Yes, you do!” insisted Lukas, seizing him again by the arm.

Isaac winced in pain. “Lukas, let go!”

“Tell me what’s going on, now!”

“Ow, ow, ow!” Isaac grunted, writhing as Lukas pinned his arm behind his back with one hand, pulling his curly hair with the other.

“Tell me, Isaac!”

“Okay, okay!” the young man gasped. At last, Lukas let him go. Rubbing his sore arm, Isaac admitted, “Evan said you were really down, so he told us all to keep an eye on you while he was away.”

“He what?”

“We’re just trying to help, you know!” Isaac told him, his tone rough with frustration. “Jeez, you’re the crabbiest, most defensive person I’ve ever met!”

The two stared eachother down for a long moment. A roulette of terrible thoughts raced through Lukas’ head so fast that he couldn’t even decipher them. They turned his stomach and clenched his fists, and before he knew it he had thrown Isaac to the ground.

“Hey!” the young man barked, but by the time he picked himself up, Lukas was already half-way up the ladder.

The archer stood at the top of the balcony and shouted down at him, “I’m not a child! I don’t need a damn babysitter! Don’t ever patronize me like this again, you hear me?”

With that, he disappeared into his house and slammed the door behind him. Isaac stared up at the house for a long, silent moment. Several crows were perched on the balcony railing, letting out the occasional caw.

He considered climbing up there and chasing after him, but he knew the door would be locked. What would he have to gain anyway? Isaac wasn’t fond of Lukas in the first place, but he especially didn’t care for him now. Not as his pride and his arm both throbbed in pain.

“Fine! Stay up there all by yourself and be miserable then!” shouted Isaac, and then he returned to his work on the farm.

*

The noose dangled from the ceiling, still and silent. Yet it somehow called to Lukas, framing his face as he stood before it. The wooden stool was only a step away, and the release of death wasn’t far from that.

Lukas reached into his vest pocket and pulled out the crow’s feather. He could barely see it in the darkness of his shuttered house. Sheer exhaustion had overtaken his will to die, so he stepped away from the noose and collapsed in his hammock. He set the feather on the bedside table.

He would only nap for a few minutes, he thought. Just to get some energy back in his limbs. Lukas closed his eyes and the minutes turned to hours. He thrashed and groaned in his sleep, for in his dreams he was fighting off a vicious beast.

It was a hulking, mangy thing of hay-colored fur. Its maw was wolf like, several rows of sharp teeth leading down into the abyss of its throat. Those teeth snapped relentlessly at Lukas’ face.

He was barely holding it off, struggling with his hands around its massive neck. It snapped and slavered, glaring hatefully towards him with Evan’s green eyes.

The beast lunged forth and clamped its jaws around Lukas’ head. He awoke flailing, nearly toppling out of his hammock. He could still feel the beast’s saliva on his face, but when he wiped it away, he realized it was only his own sweat.

“Lukas? Come on, I know you’re in there!” a voice called from outside his door. It was Alaine. She knocked again, and Lukas realized she’d probably been standing out there knocking for some time. He stumbled towards the door, nearly opened it but stopped. His hand hovered above the knob.

“What do you want?” he called, damning the grogginess in his throat. He peeked through the slats in the shutters. He saw Alaine standing on his balcony with Mr. Ocean just beside her. Both of them were carrying bows and quivers.

Alaine replied, “I want you to come duck hunting with us!”

Lukas leaned against the doorframe and said, “No, you don’t. I’d just ruin everything.”

“Why would you say that? No one can shoot a bow like you can! Maybe you can teach us a thing or two?”

“Look,” Lukas began sharply, “I know what you’re doing. Whatever Evan told you, just forget about it! I don’t need you guys breathing down my neck like I’m some kind of basket case!”

Alaine begged, “It’s not like that, Luke! I just thought it would be good for you to get out once in a while! You spend so much time by yourself, if it hasn’t made you crazy already, it will some day!”

“I’ve been in agony the entire time you’ve known me, and you’re just now pretending to care,” snapped Lukas. “Why? Because Evan asked you to?”

Frustration crept into the mermaid’s tone when she argued, “No! Because I _want_ to, obviously! You should know by now that I don’t do a damn thing I don’t want to do, ever!”

“You’re a liar,” Lukas told her, face scrunching in disgust.

He heard her palm slam against his door as she shouted, “What on Gaia is wrong with you? Glen, Jay, and Izzy told us you’ve been acting like a raging asshole all day!”

“I’m _tired_ , Alaine! I haven’t slept in twenty years, and I never will so long as you’re up here banging on my door! Get off my property and take your fake kindness with you!”

Alaine fell silent for a short moment, staring slack-jawed at the door. Through the slats, he could see her fist clenching at her side. She took a deep breath, said, “Come on, Ocean,” and ushered the cecaelia down the ladder.

Before she climbed down after him, she shouted back at Lukas, “You can be a sorry sad-sack all you want, but you don’t have to be rude! This is exactly why no one wants to hang out with you!”

She slapped one of the crows off the railing before descending the ladder. The bird flew away with a squawk and a burst of feathers. “Good luck with your vermin problem, because I’m sure not going to help you with it!” she barked.

Once they reached the bottom of the ladder, Mr. Ocean turned back towards Lukas’ treehouse. Lukas just barely heard his voice, gentle and soft-spoken as ever when he said, “You’re always welcome to join us later if you wish.”

The two disappeared down the road.

The noose was calling again. Lukas ignored it and picked up the feather from the bedside table. What did he have to lose anymore? Just a bunch of fake friends and a miserable, loveless existence.

Lukas stood in the center of the room, pressing the feather to his lips. He closed his eyes and whispered, “Morganya?”

He waited for a few seconds, then opened his eyes. He jumped with a start at the pale face looking back at him. There was Morganya, looking just the same as the last time he saw her. She pulled back her hood, exposing a head of long, dark hair.

He could just barely make out her form in the darkness. She said, “I’m here for you, Lukas. They don’t care for you…” She tilted her head towards the door. “But I do, and I always will. I will always answer your call. You had another nightmare, didn’t you?”

Lukas raked his fingers through his unkempt locks. “There was a beast,” he told her. “It was trying to kill me.”

Stepping forward, Morganya placed her hands on his arms and guided him down to the floor. “Did you fight the beast?” she asked, sitting beside him.

He said, “Of course I did, but I wasn’t strong enough. It killed me like it always does. I die in all my dreams, and then I wake up.”

“Why did you fight it?”

“Because I—”

The question caught Lukas off-guard. He paused, thinking it over for a moment. Morganya added, “Your nightmares burden you. But if death is your release, why not let it take you? Such is life, Lukas…” The divine cupped his jaw in her cold hands. “Life is a nightmare. Mortals are born into a lifetime of suffering, yet they spend all their efforts avoiding the one way out.”

Lukas remained silent, pondering her words. “You are a lonely one,” she continued, “as you’ll always be. Because you’ve chosen this loneliness for yourself, haven’t you?”

“Love isn’t worth it,” Lukas told her solemnly. “I learned that the hard way. I can’t let anyone get too close or I’ll learn it all over again.”

Morganya nodded, stroking the side of his face. She replied, “That’s right. Mortal love only ever ends in death, and death ends in tears. Why then should you allow yourself to suffer without love, miserable and alone?”

Lukas felt his limbs getting heavier by the second. Lethargy was setting in, as if the last two decades of anguish were flooding over him at once. Tears welled in his eyes when he croaked, “I…I don’t know why, I…” He trailed off, unable to finish. He hadn’t even the energy to cry.

Morganya lowered him to the floor, laying his head down upon a sitting cushion near the table. “Yes, lay your weary head down,” she said softly.

“I’m so tired, Morganya,” he muttered, eyes falling closed. “But I can’t face my dreams again…”

She reminded him, “You only have to suffer them as long as you choose. You know the way out.”

Lukas tried to speak, but the words were just as lifeless as he was. His eyes wouldn’t open, his muscles wouldn’t move. His thoughts drifted into darkness, and then he was back in the horrid jungle.

He thrashed his way through thorny tendrils and twisting branches. They grabbed at his clothes like clawing hands, trying to hold him down for the hungry Queen Python. Lukas could sense her, but he could not see her. He never could until it was too late. Fear and panic threw his heart into a frenzy, and he could barely breathe as it was. The jungle was as humid as the Midlands in the waking world during a hot, oppressive summer rain.

A long, heavy rope suddenly dropped from the forest canopy, blocking Lukas’ path. Its end was tied into a noose. He stepped back and realized it was not a rope, but the Queen Python herself! She dangled from the treetops by her tail, untangling her yellow neck from itself. Lukas tried to maneuver around her, but the thorns and branches caught his clothes and refused to let go.

The python was rapidly approaching. Lukas stopped fighting the jungle’s pull, relaxing his body against the branches. Morganya’s voice drifted through his consciousness.

“ _You know the way out_.”

Turning around, Lukas faced the Queen Python head-on. His mother’s face glowered back at him. He stood before her, calm and silent as she coiled around his body. He felt the snake’s muscles tighten over his legs, his torso, gnashed his teeth at the crack of his ribs.

He didn’t realize he’d closed his eyes, but when he opened them, he was staring down his mother’s throat through her gaping, unhinged jaw.

“Just kill me already!” he shouted. His whole body suddenly jerked, and he was back in the waking world. He’d woken himself with his own shout, he realized, and Morganya was gone. Never in his life had he felt disappointed to wake up. But that was how he felt then as he lay on the floor of his dark house, as alone and unwanted as he was in his dreams.

He had no idea what time it was anymore. The minutes slogged by, turning to hours, turning to oblivion. Balthazaar and Skel had been banging on his door for a long while, trying to coax him out. Lukas couldn’t even imagine dragging his body off the floor, much less interacting with them. He said nothing and continued to lie there until they eventually had enough.

“That’s it! I’m breaking this door down!” cried Balthazaar, and he did exactly that. With one solid kick, the door flew open and hit the wall with a thud. Afternoon light flooded the little room, illuminating the grim picture inside.

Balthazaar stepped through the doorway, looking all around through rounded eyes. First he noticed the noose dangling above the wooden stool. Then he noticed Lukas, curled up on the floor with his eyes glazed-over.

For a moment, Balthazaar was certain the man was dead. Then he crouched beside him and checked his pulse, touched his clammy forehead, tried to speak to him but barely got an answer.

Skel peeked in the doorway and queried, “Is he alright?”

“He’s alive,” reported Balthazaar, already lifting Lukas over his shoulder. “But I think he’s really sick! We have to get him to Che, now!”

The two of them carried Lukas all the way to the village proper. They stepped into Dr. Che’s clinic, the lobby stuffed with sick and injured travelers. Balthazaar’s booming voice called out, “Che, come quick! We have an emergency here!”

*

As protectors of the village, the Freelance Good Guys always received preferential treatment at the clinic. Dr. Che hurried Lukas into the examination room while nurse Tojum tended the other patients. Skel went to fetch all the fellow crewmen he could, and by the time Dr. Che finished the exam, the recovery room was crowded by Alaine, Glenvar, Jeimos, and Balthazaar.

“He is dry like sand, not enough water,” Che reported. “I give him water, dryness is better now. But he still sick. Not here…” He gestured vaguely towards Lukas’ body, then tapped on his forehead. “But here. He has, I believe, the sadness.”

“The sadness?” questioned Alaine.

Dr. Che nodded, adjusting his spectacles as he explained, “Yes, it is terrible condition! When patient is sick with the sadness, he cannot laugh. He not want to eat or drink, not want to wash, only want to be sad. Sometimes gets better, sometimes not. I am sorry, but I cannot treat.”

“What do ya mean ya can’t treat it?” blurted Glenvar. “Are ya a doctor or not?”

Dr. Che’s tone was strained. “I can order medicine, but it will not fix. Only hide. Mr. Fanaka must find the mother of his sadness and defeat her himself. I cannot do for him.”

The mercenaries exchanged looks of uncertainty. Jeimos was the first to speak, “So he must find the source of his misery and reconcile with it. Perhaps we can help him find it?”

“Just leave me alone,” said Lukas. It was the first word he’d spoken in hours, his voice low and droning.

“Lukas, didn’t you hear the doctor? You’re very sick!” exclaimed Alaine. “Whatever you’re going through, you can’t give up! You need to fight it or you’ll never get better!”

“There is no ‘better’,” insisted Lukas. Each movement seemed laborious as he slid off the cot and rose to his feet. The mercenaries stepped aside, watching him trudge his way through the lobby and out of the clinic.

Balthazaar nearly chased after him, then sighed to his crewmen, “Ugh. Feredil really needs me at home right now. Can you guys look after him?”

“I’m busy, sorry,” yawned Skel, making his way out the door.

But Alaine was quick to respond, “We’ll do it. Come on, guys.” She patted Jeimos and Glenvar on the arms, ushering them after Lukas.

They followed him as he slowly made his way down the trail, trying to talk sense into him all the while. Lukas wouldn’t hear a word of it. It was as if he’d become deaf to all hope and suggestion, hearing only the beckoning misery.

Eventually Lukas led them all the way back to his treehouse. He began climbing the ladder to his balcony as Jeimos told him, “Lukas, you’re in no condition to be alone right now! Please, come stay with one of us so we can care for you!”

“I’m not alone,” said Lukas. “I have a friend up there. She takes better care of me than any of you ever have.”

Glenvar furrowed his yellow brows. “Oh yeah? Who is she?” he asked.

“None of your business,” Lukas told him flatly, and then he disappeared back into his house. The door closed and locked behind him.

“Damn it,” growled Alaine. “Do I have to go up there and kick his door down?”

Jeimos touched her arm and replied, “No, please don’t. Let’s not do anything to agitate him further. My stars, I’m so worried about him…”

“So what do we do? Just let him rot?” said Glenvar. “Evan’s gonna wring all our necks if he comes back ‘n finds Luke in the dirt!”

A thoughtful moment passed between the trio. Then Alaine suggested, “I think we should do a little recon.”

“Are you saying we should spy on him?” asked Jeimos.

The mermaid shrugged and said, “It’s for his own good, right? What other choice do we have?”

“Yeah,” agreed Glenvar. “I wanna see this so-called ‘friend’ of his. Probably a feck-doll or somethin’, mad as he is now!”

The trio made their decision. They waited on Lukas’ balcony, pressing their ears to the door for any sign of movement and taking shifts to get snacks. Alaine with her Aquarian eyes, and Jeimos with their sharp elven vision, could peer through the keyhole and see him inside, still lying on the floor where he’d been all day.

He never once got up to eat, drink, relieve himself, or otherwise. Just before sunset, Isaac rode by on Shadow’s back as she strutted towards the compound gate. He must have been training earlier, for he was clad in leather armor with his golden scythe on his back. He spotted Alaine, Jeimos, and Glenvar sitting together on the balcony above, playing a game of cards.

“Is he any better?” asked Isaac.

“No,” Alaine reported grimly. “He’s just been lying on his floor like a heap of trash since he got home. If he doesn’t move soon, we’ll have to break his door down again and take him back to Che. I’m so—”

Jeimos took a peek through the keyhole once more. This time they gasped and whispered, “Chaps, look! He’s not alone, there’s someone in there!”

“What?” Alaine and Glenvar blurted simultaneously, then fought for a spot in front of the keyhole. They both peered inside, and even Glenvar with his inferior human eyes could just barely see a silhouette in the darkness.

The figure was tall and shrouded by some kind of cloak. It kneeled down and sat silently beside Lukas. Isaac made his way up the ladder and asked, “What’s going on?”

Jeimos answered quietly, “He really does have a friend in there, by the look of it. I can’t get a good visual at them though. They’re wearing some kind of cloak.”

“I’m just wondering how they got in without us noticing! There was no one in there before!” mentioned Alaine.

“Maybe it was magic,” suggested Isaac.

The group considered it for a moment, then Jeimos said, “I don’t like this at all. We may be dealing with malign forces.”

“Can I kick the door down now?” groaned Alaine.

Jeimos stood up and sighed, “Oh, very well. Defensive positions, chaps!”

The mercenaries reached into their boots and vests, equipping all their concealed daggers before Alaine forced the door open with a mighty kick. Light flooded the room like water, pouring over Lukas. He was still on the floor, but his friend was suddenly nowhere to be found.

The four mercenaries stepped inside, searching the small room. “Hello?” called Alaine.

Glenvar nudged Lukas with his foot and asked, “Hey Luke, where’s yer friend? They were just here a second ago!”

Before he could answer, Shadow let out a loud screech from outside. Isaac rushed to the balcony to check on her. She stood on the path below, aggressively flapping her wings and shrieking at the sky. High above, a flock of crows was circling the roof. Isaac watched them swarm together and take off towards the east.

Strange, he thought. Shadow didn’t usually pay mind to her smaller cousins. They were too small to eat and hardly worth her time.

“I’ll be right back!” he called to his friends, then he slid down the ladder and jumped onto the roc’s saddle. “Up-up!” he commanded. The roc was airborne in a flash, bolting over the forest canopy to follow the crows.

The flock dived and weaved through the forest canopy. Shadow effortlessly snapped branches in her wake. The flock took a sudden turn and Shadow gripped a redwood trunk with her talons, launching herself off to follow them. The tree creaked beneath her weight, snapped under her push, and cracked in two. The forest boomed as the top half of the tree crashed to the ground.

After a long chase, the flock finally slowed. The crows spiraled down to the forest floor and converged into a flapping, cawing pillar. Shadow thumped down before them, Isaac leaping off her back. He cautiously approached the pillar of crows, then jumped back when black smoke concealed them.

The smoke quickly disappeared and so too did the crows. It left nothing but a woman behind, dressed in a black hooded cloak that obscured all but the bottom portion of her face. “You’re very persistent, aren’t you? Just looking at you makes me tired,” she said. Her voice was low and droning, as if each word was a chore.

Shadow crowed warily at the woman. Isaac stayed close to the bird and asked, “What did you do to Lukas?”

The woman made a sound, the faintest ghost of a chuckle. “That’s quite the accusatory question.”

Isaac quickly replied, “Don’t play with me. I know you must be some kind of sorceress, so what did you do?”

“I’ve been nothing but a good friend to him,” she said, pale lips twisting into a scowl. “Unlike you mortals, you who have no patience for his pain! You who tether him to this ugly, mortal realm, damning him to suffer for your own amusement!”

Isaac pulled the scythe off his back and barked, “Look, lady! I don’t know what your problem is, but if you don’t leave my friend alone, I won’t hesitate to kill you! You better leave the Hollow and never come back!”

Of all the reactions to have, the woman let out a slow, languid laugh. She spread her arms and said, “Oh, if only you could kill me! But the Spirit of Gaia has cursed me to forever live this horrid existence. I die, and I die, and I _die_ , but She always brings me back to this realm just to watch me suffer. Our maker is a cruel, unforgiving creature.”

Isaac asked his question cautiously, “Wait. You’re really a divine?”

“Unfortunately,” she said. She pointed a finger at him, speaking through her teeth, “You don’t even know how lucky you are. You’ve been blessed with death! Oh, death! Sweet death! One way or another, you will escape this realm while I remain trapped forever! Divinity is a curse, I tell you!”

She gestured towards the forest and continued, “Lukas is not blind, he sees through your mortal lies! I have taken it upon myself to seek poor souls like him and free them from their torment. I am not cruel like Mother Gaia! I have only enlightened your friend to the truth!”

Isaac’s grip tightened on his scythe. “You’re making him suicidal, you crazy witch! What you’re doing is evil!” he shouted.

The divine replied calmly, “Everyone dies eventually. Everyone escapes their suffering, everyone’s story gets a happy ending—all except for mine! Death is inevitable for you, and so is pain. There will come a day when you will suffer too, and then you will understand as you beg for death to set you free. I am no enemy, boy…”

She extended a pale hand towards Isaac. “…I am the best friend you’ll ever have. I won’t allow you to suffer the burden of life. Take my hand and I will show you the truth. I will set you free.”

Isaac stared at the ghostly hand with equal parts intrigue and horror. There was something strangely enchanting about her, despite her unhinged words. Just behind him, Shadow raised her wings high and screeched at the divine. The sound started Isaac, snapping him back to his senses.

“You’re insane! Get away from me!” he panicked, swinging his scythe in a smooth arc. The divine staggered back, clutching her extended wrist. Isaac’s jaw dropped when he realized what he’d done.

Her pale hand lie severed in the grass between them. It shriveled in seconds, crumbling to gray dust that dissipated in the breeze.

The divine tore her hood back, exposing her equally pale face. Her blue eyes were blown wide as she observed the black, starry blood gushing from her wrist stump. Each droplet seemed to contain a cosmos, but after a short time, the blood faded to red. The divine gasped at the sight of it, then looked back at Isaac, pointing at his scythe with her remaining hand.

“The Divine Executioner!” she gasped. “So it is no legend! You hold it there, right in your hands!”

Isaac stepped back, eyeing her warily. “Divine what?” he queried.

“It’s no wonder I was so drawn to this place,” continued the divine. A smile spread across her lips, the first Isaac had seen her wear. “I have spent my entire miserable existence searching for that weapon!”

She stepped towards him. Isaac took a step back and Shadow halted her with another aggressive screech. The divine stood before them, black tears streaming down her face as she pleaded, “Please, you hold the one key that can unlock my cage! You can free me from this endless torment! Won’t you have mercy on me? I beg you! I beg you, please!”

Her voice fell ragged with sobs. She spread her arms wide, exposing her torso for a good, clean cut with the scythe.

But Isaac only just met her, he did not trust her in the slightest, and she was obviously sick beyond measure.

“I’m not going to kill you,” he told her.

“What?” the divine gasped. She fell to her knees and shrieked, “Why would you do this to me? How could you possibly be so cruel?”

“How do I know this isn’t a trick?” he asked. “You’re trying to kill my friend! I don’t trust a damn thing about you, lady!”

Glaring up at him, the divine’s voice was full of fury as she snarled, “I was never trying to kill him! I haven’t taken a single life since I became a divine! I only show truth-seekers what they seek, and they choose to take their own lives once they find it! I am not a cruel, I am not a murderer, I am not the evil witch you think I am!”

She rose to her feet, clenching her fist at her side. “But I can become one, if that’s what it takes to escape this nightmare!”

A cloud of black smoke suddenly consumed the divine. The smoke transformed into a flock of crows, which flew off into the dark forest canopy. Isaac cursed her under his breath as he scrambled up Shadow’s harness into her saddle. He had to get back to Lukas, and fast.

*

“Lukas, don’t do this! Please!” cried Jeimos, watching helplessly as Alaine and Glenvar tried to wrestle a knife from his hands.

“Let me go! Let me escape this nightmare!” Lukas pleaded, but his friends would unhand him for nothing. All was quiet until just a moment ago when Lukas suddenly shot to his feet and swiped a knife off the table. Alaine tackled him just before he could plunge it into his own chest, and now they were locked in a battle to disarm him.

For a man without energy to feed himself just minutes ago, Lukas was suddenly coursing with strength and passion. The four mercenaries briefly slowed their struggle when they heard a heavy thump against the roof. Seconds later, Isaac burst through the door and cried, “An evil divine is trying to kill Lukas!”

Struggling against his crewmens’ grip, Lukas argued, “Morganya would never hurt me! She loves me more than you guys ever have! She’s the only real friend I have in this awful world!”

“You’re speaking madness!” said Jeimos. They turned to Isaac and said, “He’s clearly been cursed! Where is this blasted divine?”

Before Isaac could answer, a flock of crows flew in through the open door. They converged and turned to smoke just as before, leaving Morganya in their place.

“I stand here before you,” she said to them, “and my patience has run out! Reap my wretched soul with your scythe, or else I will torment Lukas until his last dying breath! If you think he’s suffering now, you’ve seen nothing of my power!”

Her words caught Lukas off-guard. He loosened his grip on the knife, allowing Alaine disarm him.

“I will _ruin_ him,” the divine snarled towards Isaac, “I will destroy his will to live and sap his energy to deliver his own death! I will leave him in shambles until you give me what I want! It’s all on you, boy! Do you want your friend to suffer, or will you set me free?”

Lukas jerked away from Alaine. His expression was contorted with hurt when he said, “Morganya, you lied to me! You said—”

“Do you really think I care for your pathetic life, mortal?” Morganya snapped. “You’re no less fleeting and disposable than the rest! The only thing worse than death is life, and I would sacrifice every last mortal on Gaia if it meant I could join them in their peaceful oblivion!”

She turned back to Isaac. “What will it be?”

But before Isaac could decide, Lukas made the decision for him. The archer suddenly ripped the scythe from Isaac hands, letting out a furious howl as he plunged its golden crescent through Morganya’s chest. It sliced through her body as if she were made of fog.

Morganya gasped towards the ceiling, dropping to her knees. Red, mortal blood spilled from her wound. Right before the mercenaries’ eyes, she began aging a year every second. Her dark hair faded to white, her smooth skin wrinkled, shriveled, and then turned gray. Her teeth fell out and clattered on the floor, then turned to dust. Her laughter filled the room, high and bright with genuine happiness.

Her body started to crumple as her limbs collapsed into dust. Her voice was just a whisper when she said, “Thank you.” Her face fell away like sand, and then she was nothing but a heap of ash and a cloak on the floor. The mercenaries stared, disbelieving what they’d just seen.

After a moment, Lukas dropped the scythe. He staggered backwards until his back hit the wall, then he slumped down and buried his head between his knees. His friends kneeled around him. He felt their warm hands on his shoulders, solid and so very real as they had always been.

*

Evan stepped out of the dragon’s gazebo, stepping back into Drifter’s Hollow after 3 days in a foreign land. He tossed a coin to the pilot, who saluted him before guiding his mighty dragon up into the sky. The trip was a spontaneous and exhausting affair. Evan was glad to be home.

He walked down the main road of Drifter’s Hollow, greeting villagers as he passed until he arrived back in the mercenaries’ compound. Though his bed was calling him, Evan ignored it for the time being and made his way up the ladder to Lukas’ treehouse. To his surprise, the shutters were wide open.

He peeked through the small window and saw Lukas inside, sitting in front of his easel. He was painting a large portrait of Alaine, Jeimos, Glenvar, and Isaac, all posing heroically in their armor.

Isaac spotted Evan’s face through the window and waved, exclaiming, “Hey, Evan’s back!”

Lukas refused to tear his focused eyes away from his work when he called, “Just come in! Watch your step, there’s paint on the floor!”

Evan did so, passing through the door. The room was brighter and more organized than he’d ever seen it. There was no clutter to be seen except the tubes and bottles of paint scattered around Lukas’ stool.

“I see you did some cleaning while I was gone,” said Evan. “What else have you guys been up to?”

Glenvar answered, “Oh, slayin’ divines. Y’know, the usual.”

Evan chuckled, “Ah, of course.”

“No, really,” Lukas told him flatly, still focused on his painting. “We killed a divine. Like, permanently. Turns out Isaac’s scythe can do that.”

Evan tilted his head, expression hardening as he tried to determine how serious they were. “You’re kidding,” he said.

But Alaine told him, “Nope! Some weird divine was screwing with Luke’s head, so we had to put her down. She told Isaac some pretty interesting stuff about that weapon though.”

Evan stared at his crewmen in disbelief. “I can’t leave for a second, can I? I was only gone for three days!”

Finally, Lukas set his paintbrush aside. He addressed the trio before him when he said, “That’s enough for today. Tell Elska, Ocean, and the Steel Knuckle guys to come by the plaza tomorrow and I’ll sketch them in too. We’ll tell Evan about our adventure over dinner later.”

The trio mumbled their acknowledgments as they stood up, stretching their muscles and crackling their joints. They bid him farewell as they made their exit, leaving him alone with Evan.

Lukas swiveled around on his stool to face him and said, “I didn’t even know you were leaving until you were already gone. Couldn’t even be bothered to say goodbye, huh?”

“Lukas, I’m so sorry,” Evan sighed, dropping his rucksack on the floor. “I didn’t know I was leaving either up until the last minute! Jelani surprised me with a trip to Galsungu, and in all his wisdom, he sent a private flight without even telling me. I thought you might be upset, but I also didn’t want to offend your brother. Our relationship is in a, er… _delicate_ place at the moment.”

The bitterness seemed to melt from Lukas’ face. His brow softened and so too did the lines of his scowl. “Oh,” he said, suddenly feeling foolish. “I see. I thought maybe…” He shook his head. “You know what? I don’t even know what I thought. I’m sorry, Evan. I was in a really bad place when I got mad about that.”

Evan pulled up a cushion and sat down in front of him. He replied, “That’s alright, friend. Whatever madness happened here while I was gone, it sounds like the Guys took care of it. How are you feeling now?”

“Like I’m crawling through a long, dark sewer with shit up to my eyes,” Lukas admitted wearily. “But I think I can see a light at the end of it. It’s far away, but I mean, it’s there. I’m sure of it.”

“So a divine has been toying with your mind? Did I hear that correctly?” asked Evan.

Lukas explained quietly, “She was. But I was in pain long before she ever touched me. I’ve been hurting my whole life, Evan. I think that’s why she was drawn to me in the first place.”

Evan frowned. He reached forth and placed a hand on Lukas’ knee. “I know your heart’s been aching for a long time. I would take the pain from you if I could.”

“I know,” said Lukas, offering a tiny smile. “I’m glad to have you around, and the other guys too. I’m sorry I don’t show it like I should, but I do appreciate you. I appreciate you a lot. Gods know I’d be long-dead on my own.”

“That’s all I ever wanted to hear,” Evan told him. “I bet the Guys would like to hear it too.”

Lukas cringed at the thought. “Ugh, it’s hard enough just telling _you_ , and I’ve known you for over twenty years! I can’t just spill my feelings like people do. Feels like I’m getting caught with my pants down.”

“Well, no one here would judge what they saw,” said Evan. “You’re talking to a man who cannibalized his own father, Lukas. If our friends haven’t abandoned me for that, I doubt they’d abandon you for shedding a tear or two. Hostility makes a damn fine shield. But even the hardest warriors must lower their shields sometimes, lest they blind themselves to everything in front of them.”

Lukas nodded, scrubbing at his brow. “You’re right,” he muttered. “I can’t go on like this—especially if it’s drawing insane, soul-sucking divines into our village. I didn’t realize how much my own pain was hurting others. I…I hate to admit this, but I think I need help. I need to resolve my misery before it gets someone killed.”

“We will search for a doctor,” suggested Evan. “Not like Dr. Che, but a head doctor. Someone who understands the mind. A telepath, perhaps.”

“You mean I should just let someone root around in my brain?” queried Lukas, curling his lip in disgust.

Evan shrugged, replied, “Dr. Che’s been rooting around in our bodies for years, pulling out arrowheads and mending bones and whatnot. If there’s something in your brain that ails you, I think it’s high time someone got in there and fixed it.”

Lukas thought it over for a moment. Slowly he nodded, deciding, “Yeah. I guess so.”

Evan grunted as he got back to his sore feet. “I need to get some dinner in me before the ol’ lycanthropy starts acting up. I don’t suppose you’d like some company tonight?”

“No,” said Lukas. “I’ll be fine. I promise.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure. Oh, but I have a favor to ask before you go…”

Lukas stood up and reached into one of his cabinets. He pulled out the noose, rolled up in a tight coil, and handed it to Evan. “Can you burn this thing for me?”

**END**

*

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Feedback is very much appreciated, both positive and negative. Or if you're shy, kudos are awesome too. :) These things help me track how many people are actually reading the series.
> 
> Check out http://loominggaia.tumblr.com for more Looming Gaia content!


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